EP0800591B1 - Amalgam for use in fluorescent lamps comprising lead, tin, mercury together with another of the group silver, magnesium, copper, nickel, gold and platinum - Google Patents

Amalgam for use in fluorescent lamps comprising lead, tin, mercury together with another of the group silver, magnesium, copper, nickel, gold and platinum Download PDF

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Publication number
EP0800591B1
EP0800591B1 EP96932720A EP96932720A EP0800591B1 EP 0800591 B1 EP0800591 B1 EP 0800591B1 EP 96932720 A EP96932720 A EP 96932720A EP 96932720 A EP96932720 A EP 96932720A EP 0800591 B1 EP0800591 B1 EP 0800591B1
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EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
amalgam
mercury
lead
tin
fluorescent lamps
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Expired - Lifetime
Application number
EP96932720A
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German (de)
French (fr)
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EP0800591A1 (en
Inventor
Graham Malcolm Forsdyke
Stuart Albert Mucklejohn
Alan Thomas Dinsdale
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General Electric Co
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General Electric Co
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Publication date
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Publication of EP0800591A1 publication Critical patent/EP0800591A1/en
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    • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
    • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
    • C22C—ALLOYS
    • C22C7/00—Alloys based on mercury
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J61/00—Gas-discharge or vapour-discharge lamps
    • H01J61/02—Details
    • H01J61/24—Means for obtaining or maintaining the desired pressure within the vessel
    • H01J61/28—Means for producing, introducing, or replenishing gas or vapour during operation of the lamp
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J65/00—Lamps without any electrode inside the vessel; Lamps with at least one main electrode outside the vessel

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to amalgams for use in fluorescent lamps and other devices which require amalgams.
  • the luminous flux of a fluorescent lamp depends to a considerable extent on the mercury-vapour pressure present in the tube.
  • the pressure is determined by the temperature of the coolest part of the tube, which is usually the wall.
  • the maximum luminous flux is reached when the wall temperature is 40°C which for many fluorescent lamps corresponds to an ambient temperature of 25°C.
  • the wall temperature of lamps in closed luminaires or special lamps can be very much higher. In such conditions a high luminous flux can still be attained by using a suitable amalgam in place of pure mercury.
  • Bloem et al disclose various amalgams containing mercury and one or more of the metals Pb, Sn, Bi, In, Cd, Ga and Ti and state that of amalgams with three or four metals Bi-Pb-Sn-Hg seemed to be the most promising. Bloem et al discuss Bi 0.53 In 0.47 with 6 atomic percent Hg and Bi 0.47 Pb 0.29 Sn 0.24 with 6 atomic percent Hg, which gave the best results. These amalgams give good stable luminous flux at higher than ambient temperature without the mercury-vapour pressure being too low at ambient temperature thus allowing the lamp to reach its maximum luminous flux.
  • US-A-4,924,142 discloses an amalgam comprising Hg, In, Sn and Zn, wherein the ratio between the atoms of In and Sn is between 3:1 and 8:1; the ratio between the sum of the atoms of In and Sn and the atoms of Zn is between 95:5 and 99:1; and the ratio between the sum of the atoms of In, Sn and Zn and the atoms of Hg is between 95:5 and 99:1.
  • US-A-4,924,142 discloses an example of the amalgam in which the atomic ratio of the elements In: Sn: Zn is 82.5: 16:1.5, with 2 atomic percent Hg.
  • the temperature pressure curve of such an amalgam is shown by curve 4924142 in the accompanying Figure 1. The curve shows that the temperature interval of the operating range of the amalgam (the plateau) is between 105°C and 130°C where the plateau pressure is about 3 X 10 -3 Torr.
  • US-A-4,615,846 discloses an amalgam consisting of 15 to 57 wt % Sn, 5 to 40 wt % Pb, 30 to 70 wt % Bi, 4 to 50 wt % In and 4 to 25 wt % Hg.
  • the temperature pressure curve of such an amalgam is shown by curve 4615846 in the accompanying Figure 1. The curve shows that within the temperature range 50° to 130°C the mercury vapour pressure is held at 6 X 10 -3 to 7 X 10 -3 mm Hg (Torr).
  • EP-B1-0,157,440 discloses an amalgam of Hg and an alloy wherein the alloy is composed of bismuth, lead and silver whereby the mutual ratio of the numbers of atoms of bismuth, lead and silver lies in the quadrangle ABCD of the ternary diagram Bi-Pb-Ag with
  • an amalgam having the following composition in mole fractions mercury 0.001 to 0.005 lead 0.24 to 0.48 tin 0.45 to 0.73 other metal 0.01 to 0.15, said other metal being selected from the group consisting of silver, magnesium, copper, gold, platinum and nickel, the sum of said mole fractions being equal to 1.
  • a surprising property of such systems is a region of slowly changing vapour pressure with temperature which can be utilised to give optimum mercury vapour pressure for a fluorescent lamp at a high temperature.
  • amalgams with low mercury content exhibit a small change in mercury partial pressure over a large temperature range.
  • the partial pressure of mercury varies by approximately 1.4 Pa over the range 180° to 280° C. This characteristic renders these amalgam systems extremely attractive for fluorescent lamps with high cool spot temperatures.
  • a presently preferred embodiment of the invention comprises Pb 0.47 Sn 0.47 Ag 0.06 with 0.2 atomic percent Hg where the proportions of the elements are in mole fractions.
  • Such an amalgam has the characteristic of partial mercury pressure versus temperature as shown by the curve denoted INVENTION in Figure 1. This characteristic is surprising and not hitherto expected. It has a region A in which the mercury vapour pressure varies by a relatively small amount e.g. about 3 x 10 -3 Torr between about 180°C and 230°C, i.e. over a temperature range of about 50°C. The mercury vapour pressure also varies by a similar amount over the next temperature range of about 50°C (i.e. up to about 280°C), thus providing a wide temperature range (about 100°C) with only a relatively small change in vapour pressure.
  • the relatively elevated temperatures of the range A of slow change allows greater freedom in the design of fluorescent lamps, especially electrodeless fluorescent lamps.
  • amalgams according to the invention include: Pb 0.48 Sn 0.48 Ag 0.04 with 0.1 atomic percent Hg Pb 0.24 Sn 0.74 Ag 0.02 with 0.1 atomic percent Hg all of which have a pressure/temperature characteristic like (but not identical to) that shown in Figure 1 by the curve INVENTION.

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  • Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Materials Engineering (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Metallurgy (AREA)
  • Organic Chemistry (AREA)
  • Discharge Lamp (AREA)
  • Luminescent Compositions (AREA)
  • Vessels And Coating Films For Discharge Lamps (AREA)

Description

The present invention relates to amalgams for use in fluorescent lamps and other devices which require amalgams.
As discussed in "Amalgams for Fluorescent Lamps" by J. Bloem et al Philips Technical Review 38, P 3-88 1978/79 No. 3, the luminous flux of a fluorescent lamp (low-pressure mercury type) depends to a considerable extent on the mercury-vapour pressure present in the tube. The pressure is determined by the temperature of the coolest part of the tube, which is usually the wall. The maximum luminous flux is reached when the wall temperature is 40°C which for many fluorescent lamps corresponds to an ambient temperature of 25°C. The wall temperature of lamps in closed luminaires or special lamps can be very much higher. In such conditions a high luminous flux can still be attained by using a suitable amalgam in place of pure mercury. This has the effect of lowering the mercury pressure and also of keeping it more or less stable over a broad temperature range. Bloem et al disclose various amalgams containing mercury and one or more of the metals Pb, Sn, Bi, In, Cd, Ga and Ti and state that of amalgams with three or four metals Bi-Pb-Sn-Hg seemed to be the most promising. Bloem et al discuss Bi0.53 In0.47 with 6 atomic percent Hg and Bi0.47 Pb0.29 Sn0.24 with 6 atomic percent Hg, which gave the best results. These amalgams give good stable luminous flux at higher than ambient temperature without the mercury-vapour pressure being too low at ambient temperature thus allowing the lamp to reach its maximum luminous flux.
For a better understanding of the prior art and of the invention reference will be made in the following discussion to accompanying Figure 1 which shows pressure temperature curves of various amalgams.
US-A-4,924,142 discloses an amalgam comprising Hg, In, Sn and Zn, wherein the ratio between the atoms of In and Sn is between 3:1 and 8:1; the ratio between the sum of the atoms of In and Sn and the atoms of Zn is between 95:5 and 99:1; and the ratio between the sum of the atoms of In, Sn and Zn and the atoms of Hg is between 95:5 and 99:1. US-A-4,924,142 discloses an example of the amalgam in which the atomic ratio of the elements In: Sn: Zn is 82.5: 16:1.5, with 2 atomic percent Hg. The temperature pressure curve of such an amalgam is shown by curve 4924142 in the accompanying Figure 1. The curve shows that the temperature interval of the operating range of the amalgam (the plateau) is between 105°C and 130°C where the plateau pressure is about 3 X 10-3 Torr.
US-A-4,615,846 discloses an amalgam consisting of 15 to 57 wt % Sn, 5 to 40 wt % Pb, 30 to 70 wt % Bi, 4 to 50 wt % In and 4 to 25 wt % Hg. The temperature pressure curve of such an amalgam is shown by curve 4615846 in the accompanying Figure 1. The curve shows that within the temperature range 50° to 130°C the mercury vapour pressure is held at 6 X 10-3 to 7 X 10-3 mm Hg (Torr).
EP-B1-0,157,440 discloses an amalgam of Hg and an alloy wherein the alloy is composed of bismuth, lead and silver whereby the mutual ratio of the numbers of atoms of bismuth, lead and silver lies in the quadrangle ABCD of the ternary diagram Bi-Pb-Ag with
  • A:93% of Bi, 2% of Pb, 5 of Ag;
  • B:35% of Bi, 60% of Pb, 5% of Ag;
  • C:35% of Bi, 35% of Pb, 30% of Ag;
  • D:68% of Bi, 2% of Pb, 30% of Ag (atomic %),
    • and that the ratio of the sum of the number of atoms of bismuth, lead and silver to the number of atoms of mercury lies between 94:6 and 99:1.
    Curve 0157440 on the accompanying Figure 1 shows the pressure temperature curve of such an amalgam where the atom ratio of Bi:Pb:Ag:Hg = 53:24:20:3. At about 110°C the mercury vapour pressure is about 1.5Pa (11x10-3 mm Hg).
    This allows good light output at high temperature, the pressure of 1.5Pa being maintainable over a range of temperatures as indicated by the plateau about 110°C.
    According to the present invention, there is provided an amalgam having the following composition in mole fractions
    mercury 0.001 to 0.005
    lead 0.24 to 0.48
    tin 0.45 to 0.73
    other metal 0.01 to 0.15, said other metal being selected from the group consisting of silver, magnesium, copper, gold, platinum and nickel, the sum of said mole fractions being equal to 1.
    It is expected that any metal which is added to the system (Lead + Tin + Mercury) which shows:
  • Intermetallic compound formation with Tin and
  • Binary eutectic formation at high Lead contents would have a region of stability as described below and therefore be suitable for use as an amalgam system for use in fluorescent lamps.
    • It has been found that these amalgam systems work above 130°C.
    Furthermore, a surprising property of such systems, not hitherto expected, is a region of slowly changing vapour pressure with temperature which can be utilised to give optimum mercury vapour pressure for a fluorescent lamp at a high temperature.
    Over a restricted composition range of the parent alloy, e.g. Silver + Lead + Tin, amalgams with low mercury content (typically 0.2 mole per cent) exhibit a small change in mercury partial pressure over a large temperature range. In the currently preferred example below the partial pressure of mercury varies by approximately 1.4 Pa over the range 180° to 280° C. This characteristic renders these amalgam systems extremely attractive for fluorescent lamps with high cool spot temperatures.
    The systems according to the invention and described above differ from those commonly used and those reported in the literature in that there is a greater temperature range over which vapour pressure changes slowly with temperature. In the inventive systems above, this temperature range covers approximately 100°C and in commonly used systems it covers approximately 40° to 70°C. The latter systems are also restricted to a maximum temperature of 150°C.
    A presently preferred embodiment of the invention comprises Pb0.47 Sn0.47 Ag0.06 with 0.2 atomic percent Hg where the proportions of the elements are in mole fractions. Such an amalgam has the characteristic of partial mercury pressure versus temperature as shown by the curve denoted INVENTION in Figure 1. This characteristic is surprising and not hitherto expected. It has a region A in which the mercury vapour pressure varies by a relatively small amount e.g. about 3 x 10-3 Torr between about 180°C and 230°C, i.e. over a temperature range of about 50°C. The mercury vapour pressure also varies by a similar amount over the next temperature range of about 50°C (i.e. up to about 280°C), thus providing a wide temperature range (about 100°C) with only a relatively small change in vapour pressure.
    The temperatures in the region A of small change are considerably higher than the corresponding regions of the prior art.
    The relatively elevated temperatures of the range A of slow change allows greater freedom in the design of fluorescent lamps, especially electrodeless fluorescent lamps.
    Other amalgams according to the invention include:
       Pb0.48 Sn0.48 Ag0.04 with 0.1 atomic percent Hg
       Pb0.24 Sn0.74 Ag0.02 with 0.1 atomic percent Hg
    all of which have a pressure/temperature characteristic like (but not identical to) that shown in Figure 1 by the curve INVENTION.

    Claims (6)

    1. An amalgam having the following composition in mole fractions mercury 0.001 to 0.005 lead 0.24 to 0.48 tin 0.45 to 0.73 other metal 0.01 to 0.15,
      said other metal being selected from the group consisting of silver, magnesium, copper, gold, platinum and nickel, the sum of said mole fractions being equal to 1.
    2. An amalgam comprising, in mole fractions Pb0.47 Sn0.47 Ag0.06 with 0.2 atomic percent Hg.
    3. An amalgam comprising, in mole fractions Pb0.48 Sn0.48 Ag0.04 with 0.1 atomic percent Hg.
    4. An amalgam comprising in mole fractions Pb0.24 Sn0.74 Ag0.02 with 0.1 atomic percent Hg.
    5. A fluorescent lamp including an amalgam according to any preceding claim.
    6. A lamp according to claim 5 which is an electrodeless fluorescent lamp.
    EP96932720A 1995-10-05 1996-10-04 Amalgam for use in fluorescent lamps comprising lead, tin, mercury together with another of the group silver, magnesium, copper, nickel, gold and platinum Expired - Lifetime EP0800591B1 (en)

    Applications Claiming Priority (3)

    Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
    GB9520367 1995-10-05
    GBGB9520367.5A GB9520367D0 (en) 1995-10-05 1995-10-05 Fluorescent lamps
    PCT/GB1996/002435 WO1997013000A1 (en) 1995-10-05 1996-10-04 Amalgam for use in fluorescent lamps comprising lead, tin, mercury together with another of the group silver, magnesium, copper, nickel, gold and platinum

    Publications (2)

    Publication Number Publication Date
    EP0800591A1 EP0800591A1 (en) 1997-10-15
    EP0800591B1 true EP0800591B1 (en) 1999-09-22

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    EP96932720A Expired - Lifetime EP0800591B1 (en) 1995-10-05 1996-10-04 Amalgam for use in fluorescent lamps comprising lead, tin, mercury together with another of the group silver, magnesium, copper, nickel, gold and platinum

    Country Status (7)

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    US (1) US5952780A (en)
    EP (1) EP0800591B1 (en)
    JP (1) JPH10510588A (en)
    CA (1) CA2207195A1 (en)
    DE (1) DE69604381T2 (en)
    GB (1) GB9520367D0 (en)
    WO (1) WO1997013000A1 (en)

    Families Citing this family (10)

    * Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
    Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
    GB2323701A (en) * 1997-03-27 1998-09-30 Gen Electric Gas discharge lamp
    US6515421B2 (en) * 1999-09-02 2003-02-04 General Electric Company Control of leachable mercury in fluorescent lamps
    TW494439B (en) * 2000-03-21 2002-07-11 Koninkl Philips Electronics Nv Low-pressure mercury-vapor discharge lamp and amalgam
    US6853118B2 (en) * 2001-05-03 2005-02-08 General Electric Company Control of leachable mercury in mercury vapor discharge lamps
    US6781303B2 (en) * 2001-09-10 2004-08-24 Light Sources, Inc. Mercury vapor lamp amalgam target
    CN100383909C (en) * 2005-07-05 2008-04-23 朱升和 Low temp amalgam
    ATE534137T1 (en) * 2005-09-26 2011-12-15 Advanced Lighting Tech Inc BISMUTH-INDIUM-AMALGAM, FLUORESCENCE LAMPS AND PRODUCTION PROCESS
    US8668841B2 (en) * 2006-06-09 2014-03-11 Advanced Lighting Technologies, Inc. Bismuth-zinc-mercury amalgam, fluorescent lamps, and related methods
    US8564201B2 (en) 2010-11-05 2013-10-22 Nxp B.V. Amalgam-based fluorescent lamp control circuit
    CN104416153A (en) * 2013-08-26 2015-03-18 上海亚尔光源有限公司 Silver tin mercury alloy particle and preparation technology thereof

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    * Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
    Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
    GB1176955A (en) * 1967-07-17 1970-01-07 Gen Electric & English Elect Improvements in or relating to Low Pressure Mercury Vapour Fluorescent Electric Discharge Lamps and their Manufacture
    NL177163C (en) * 1976-03-04 1985-08-01 Philips Nv LOW-PRESSURE MERCURY DISCHARGE LAMP.
    JPS5834555A (en) * 1981-08-25 1983-03-01 Toshiba Corp Low pressure mercury vapor discharge lamp
    JPS59132555A (en) * 1983-01-20 1984-07-30 Toshiba Corp Low pressure mercury vapor electric-discharge lamp
    JPS6471594A (en) * 1987-09-10 1989-03-16 Furukawa Electric Co Ltd Corrosion resistant solder for heat exchanger

    Also Published As

    Publication number Publication date
    CA2207195A1 (en) 1997-04-10
    EP0800591A1 (en) 1997-10-15
    DE69604381D1 (en) 1999-10-28
    WO1997013000A1 (en) 1997-04-10
    JPH10510588A (en) 1998-10-13
    DE69604381T2 (en) 2000-05-11
    GB9520367D0 (en) 1995-12-06
    US5952780A (en) 1999-09-14

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